Mexico

In collaboration with UNAM, national stakeholders and international partners, we work towards a nation-wide coral conservation and restoration program.

Dr. Anastazia (Ania) Banaszak is our local lead for restoration and conservation efforts and she is partnered with SECORE for several years now. Ania and her team are based at the Reef Systems Academic Unit (UASA, department of the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, UNAM) in Puerto Morelos at the Caribbean coast of the Yucatan Peninsula. Together, we cooperate with national and international partners such as the Xcaret Eco Park (see TEAM to view all partners). In 2015, we started up-scaling restoration in a pilot project, similar to Project Curacao. We aim at establishing the techniques for restoration on a realistic scale. Our joined work focuses on sexually reproduced corals to maintain genetic diversity and to perform restoration in a most sustainable way.

Coral reefs throughout the Caribbean have faced disturbing changes within the last few decades (status of Caribbean coral reefs, NOAA). This includes coastal development, followed by land run off and pollution, as well as overfishing, sea-urchin die-offs―killing the grazers to keep algae growth low―and coral diseases that have altogether led to degraded reefs in many areas. Reef-building species such as the endangered elkhorn and staghorn corals (Acropora palmata, A. cervicornis) have shrunken to alarmingly low numbers with natural coral recruitment rates at very low to non-existent rates. Conservation and, regarding the low natural recruitment, especially restoration efforts are therefore urgently needed at the Riviera Maya, the Caribbean coast of Mexico.

Our joined efforts to work towards a sustainable, nation-wide coral conservation and restoration program are explained by Ania in the following: “the more people you get involved in reef restoration, the better, because we are not just talking about restoring reefs in terms of coral species. You also need to consider other important factors such as fish species for instance. Healthy grouper and shark populations are essential for a functioning reef ecosystem. That is why I’m dreaming of a nationwide Mexican reef restoration program that includes all players – among them lead institutions such as universities, National Park Commissions, Fisheries, research institutions and independent experts such as SECORE, all working together with the local communities. Most of them have already joined our network, so we have all the elements it takes, to do reef restoration along the Mexican Caribbean coast.“

The Yucatan Peninsula is bordered eastwards by the Gulf of Mexico and westwards by the Caribbean, both hosting extensive coral reefs. The peninsula consists of a limestone shelf featuring a ramified subterranean channel system. It is the main freshwater source for the Yucatan and contains the famous Cenotes (sinkholes or blue holes). The Yucatan Peninsula is characterised by a lush vegetation and a tropical climate with a pronounced rainy season.

Spectacular are the historic Mayan sites (such as Chichen-Itza world heritage site; Tulum ruins) that are popular tourist attractions. The Yucatan Peninsula witnessed the ancient civilisation of the Maya and was later colonised by the Spanish, whose influence is still noticeable by colonial-style buildings in cities such as Merida and Valladolid. Since Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821, most of the Yucatan became part of Mexican territory. Today, its historic sights and tropical scenery attract millions of tourists every year. The tourist-dominated city of Cancun is a world-known vacation destination, also accounted for by its proximity to the Mayan Riviera.